Retro: Wrath Of The Titans

WRATH OF THE TITANS

Who gave this bad sequel to a bad remake the green light?

2012: Warner Bros. Pictures

2012, Fantasy/Action, Rated PG-13

Distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures

          I have no problem with watching a bad movie once. Each film deserves at least one viewing before we call it trash or gold. A bad movie should not be the starting point for a franchise, though. This sequel is surprisingly worse than its predecessor, Clash of the Titans. That 2010 special effects driven bore-fest could have been revitalized by a stellar sequel. The premise had serious potential. Anything involving Greek myths and good effects has my support but Clash of the Titans was lame and Wrath of the Titans is even more tiresome. I'm shocked while watching these films at how boring and hollow they can make Greek mythology feel.

          The movie takes a whole bunch of Greek myths and throws them together for an adventure film with no wit or ingenuity. It stars Sam Worthington, a normally excellent action star, as Perseus: half-god and son of the almighty Zeus. This film picks up ten years after the original and Perseus now has a son and lives quietly as a fisherman after saving the world from the Kraken. Hades gets a menacing plan to unleash Kronos, the most powerful entity on earth and the father of the most powerful of the Olympian gods, from Tartarus and wreak havoc on Greece. Perseus then attempts to stop him from doing so along with Andromeda, played by Rosamund Pike, and Poseidon's son, played by Toby Kebbell. The whole movie is just lame, hollow dialogue pushing the plot forward and cheap digital monsters attacking the protagonists.

          Sam Worthington reprises his role and nothing has changed about his two-dimensional character other than his hair. The best part of his performance hs simply that he looks like he belongs in a Greek mythology adventure film. No one else in the cast can claim the same thing. For some reason I don't buy any of the actors chosen for the B.C.E. Greek setting. Toby Kebbell, playing Poseidon's son, looked like he belonged in a comedy, not a gritty action movie. Rosamund Pike also looked way out of place. Her hair was too pretty and clean and she looked goofy with a sword and armor. All the actors use phrases and words that are popular now and don't belong in any Greek mythology setting. The casting was terrible. I was waiting to find out who would play Kronos and then it turned out to be a digital effect...so that was a letdown.

          These films have the right idea, they just suffer from poor scripts and worse digital effects. There was a great shot in the beginning while Perseus is battling a Chimera that was excellent except for the creature itself. It looked so fake and digital that I couldn't help but be distracted. The film has most of its action scenes in broad daylight so hiding the poor creature effects becomes impossible. The film suffers greatly for it because epic action is all it has going for it. There is no scene here that tops the Kraken battle at the end of Clash. You can tell that the makers tried to top it with a giant digital Kronos made of lava but it didn't leave the same impression on me.

          Lackluster action, poor digital effects, and a story that is so meaningless you don't care about the outcome make this film totally not worth your time. Watching it I realized I may have demanded my money back had I seen it in IMAX 3D as it was released earlier this year. The whole film feels like a late 90s B-movie with one campy, cheesy scene after another.

          Side note: There is one sequence that breaks from the boring endless digital creature action. Tartarus in this film is a giant, ever-changing labyrinth. The scene where the characters first encounter the maze is brilliantly conceived and the most entertaining five minutes of the whole film. Also, this movie displays a great take on the Minotaur.